Although bilateral ties between Beijing and Tokyo are on the mend, a new survey has found that a record high 85 percent of Japanese have unfavorable views of China — a stunning contrast with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's talk of creating a "new era" of friendship with Japan's top Asian rival.

According to the Pew Research Center's latest Global Attitudes survey, released late Monday, Japan was the most negative toward China among the 32 countries polled.

But it wasn't alone among its neighbors in the Asia-Pacific region.